MPs question Eskom’s projected R10bn profit for 2025, warn against paying millions in bonuses

CAPE TOWN - Members of Parliament (MPs) have questioned Eskom's projected R10 billion profit for 2025, with some warning against paying millions in bonuses.  

Eskom projected the profit after almost a year without load shedding, with savings in open cycle gas turbine spending of over R11 billion.  

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The company briefed the Energy and Electricity committee on Friday just as it implemented Stage 3 load shedding, after 10 months of uninterrupted power supply.  

Eskom management had little good news to tell the committee apart from finally turning a profit after years of financial losses.  

It owed its R10 billion profit to improved performance, more people paying and tariff increases.  

However, Democratic Alliance (DA) MP Kevin Mileham said it is unjustifiable.  

“You're burdening taxpayers with increased costs of electricity, but you're going to make a R10 billion after-tax profit. That's not justifiable.”  

An MP for the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, Sipho Mbatha, said executives shouldn’t pay themselves bonuses.  

“We will hear Eskom executives telling us that as a result of the R10 billion dividend, they have paid themselves bonuses of X amount of millions each.”  

However, Eskom CFO Calib Cassim said the profits, relative to the size of their asset base of R700 billion were not sufficient.